MURRIETA: Massage parlor to close for 90 days

The owner of a Murrieta massage parlor that will be forced to
close its doors for 90 days said he will likely be unable to reopen
the business later.

Following a Tuesday hearing during which the City Council
unanimously denied the King Massage owner’s appeal of a 90-day
suspension of his business permit, an attorney for Chang Hu Zhao
said Zhao is considering challenging the forced closure in court
and filing a civil claim against the city for wages lost during
that time.

Council members, however, were unmoved by arguments that
officers had no physical proof that any sex act occurred during an
April sting operation conducted by the Murrieta Police Department
and agreed that Zhao's massage manager permit should be revoked.
They also denied the appeal of the Police Department's revocation
of Song Zhu Piao’s massage therapist permit in response to an
officer's report that she fondled him at the end of a massage.

The massage parlor on Murrieta Hot Springs Road was the focus of
an April sting operation.

Following two tips that sex was being sold at the establishment,
an undercover officer booked a half-hour massage with Piao and,
during the massage, asked her for a "happy ending."

According to a transcript of a hearing during which the sting
operation was detailed, Piao initially refused, telling the
undercover officer that "no sex" could take place on the premises.
The officer testified that Piao asked him if he was a police
officer and that he told her he was not.

The officer then testified that despite declining his
proposition, Piao later began to fondle his genitals and indicated
that she would accept $50 for the favor.

During the act, the officer, who was wired with an
audio-recording device, signaled for police support, according to
the transcripts. The support team entered the establishment and,
following a brief exchange to locate a Korean translator, arrested
Piao on suspicion of prostitution, police records show.

Due to technical errors, police officers testified, the
recording of the exchange in the massage parlor failed.

John Pozza, attorney for Piao and Zhao, argued Tuesday evening
that the lack of the recording leaves enough uncertainty, and that
neither Piao nor Zhao should face punishment.

"There are three versions to every story," Pozza said after
Tuesday’s hearing. "There's my side, there's your side and there's
the truth. The recording is the truth."

Despite the lack of a recording, council members said the
officer's verbal testimony and the fact that Piao did not deny
during the first city hearing that the sex act had happened was
sufficient evidence for them to believe that it had.

They found Zhao out of compliance with three provisions of the
municipal code, including that he did not keep adequate records of
his clients. They sanctioned him with 30 days' suspension of his
business permit for each violation, for a total of 90 days, and
agreed to revoke his permit as a massage parlor manager. They also
upheld the Police Department's revocation of Piao’s massage
technician permit. Despite the allegations against her, no criminal
charges have been filed by the Riverside County district attorney's
office.

"The officers were there because of complaints of other illegal
sex acts," Councilwoman Kelly Bennett said. "When you add that to
the rest of the evidence, I think that rises up (and is) clear and
convincing evidence."